Home
by Voice Number Seven
Summary: If she was a coward, I didn't know what bravery was. She didn't know how strong she really was, and she needed to find that inner strength I loved about her. I just wasn't the right person to help her.
1. Baka

**Title:** Home

**Author:** Lalipop

**Rating: **T

**Genre:** Drama/Romance

**Fandom:** Harvest Moon: (More) Friends of Mineral Town

**Disclaimer:** Harvest Moon and Natsume do not belong to me.

**Summary:** If she was a coward, I didn't know what bravery was. She didn't know how strong she really was, and she needed to find that inner strength I loved about her. I just wasn't the right person to help her.

**Author's Notes:** Short first chapter, but I hope you guys like it.

* * *

**Chapter the First**

"**Baka"**

* * *

"I'm a coward."

I turned around to look at her. The slim elbows hooked onto the rail, her body bent slightly over this. Blond hair blew in the air like a flag, and she stared at the sea beneath like she wanted to dive right in.

"No, you're not a coward, honey," I smiled gently and put a hand on her back, rubbing in an attempt to ease the tension there. I failed miserably.

She peeked at me, her blue eyes watery, but angry for once. "Then what am I?"

It took me a moment to come up with what I wanted to say, but when it came, it came easily. "You're smart, Claire." She rolled her eyes. "No, listen. It took you a while, but you got out of that house before it killed you. Besides, you stood up to your parents. That took guts, kid, real guts."

"I didn't stand up to anybody." She grumped, but she leaned into me when I hugged her from behind. "I'm a coward," she repeated with a sigh, almost as if she wanted to be one.

"Claire, honey, if you're a coward, then I don't know what bravery is."

She rolled her eyes again. "Where are we going again?"

"Mineral Town," I reminded her. "It's this little place I visit every summer. I even have a restaurant on the beach. And the people are nice." She glanced up at me worriedly. "Besides, it's too low-tech for any advertisements or anything to be streaming. The only TV they have is four channels of local broadcast. The whole town only has one phone, anyway, and it's at the inn. No one ever calls anyway."

Claire nodded, turning to hug me, hiding her face in my chest. I hugged her back, rubbing her spine again when the tears returned and she clung to me in an effort to keep herself together. I hated her family for doing this to her.

* * *

_I was staring at the phone when it rang, and the surprise nearly knocked me out of my chair. Maybe I was psychic…_

_Cool._

_I picked up the phone, introducing, "Carmen Residence."_

"_Kai?"_

_I stared for a minute. I recognized that voice, even through the tears I could hear through it and how quiet it was over the line._

_Shit. "Claire, what's wrong?"_

"_Kai…please… don't hang up…" She was crying now, full-blown and real. I knew that tone to her voice too well to think otherwise. She was hiding it, but she was crying. I could see her face in my mind's eye._

"_I'm not hanging up, sweetie," I reassured her, getting up and grabbing my coat. "Where are you, Claire?"_

_She paused, probably looking around for a street sign. In the moment of silence, my heartbeat thickened. She was in trouble, damn it. I knew she should have come with me when she turned eighteen… Finally, she said, "…Elm Street… Kai… hurry, please…"_

_I found her hiding in the trees at the park on the corner of Elm and Westside. The second she saw me, she jumped into my arms, sobbing. It took me a few minutes to calm her down. Only then did I notice the bag she'd hidden beside her in the leaves. She was running away. Damn it. I mean, even though her parents would accuse me of kidnapping Claire, I would never let those people near my angel ever again._

_I took her to my apartment, where I got her something to eat. While she nibbled on the sandwich and pineapple I'd set out for her, she told me what had happened. She also told me she was sorry…_

"_I shouldn't have involved you," she whispered, dropping the sandwich and reaching for another tissue. "I'm sorry, Kai…"_

_I pulled her to my side, stroking her hair. "It's alright, honey. I'm glad you came to me for help."_

"_Really?" she didn't look like she believed me._

"_Yeah," I kissed her forehead and handed her sandwich back to her. "In fact, why don't you come with me to Mineral Town for the summer? If you like it there, you can live at my place for the rest of the year or something."_

"_Can't you stay?" she whispered, clinging to me._

_I shook my head. "Your parents are already suspicious about me, honey. If I just stay away for a year or longer, they'll know I'm with you. We're lucky summer's starting in a couple of days. Everybody knows I don't stay the summer here."_

_She shrugged._

"_Then it's a deal," I finished, grinning at her. "You're staying with me, and we'll figure things out one step at a time. Okay?"_

"_Okay."_

* * *

_We packed. Well, I packed, loaning Claire some old things that used to belong to my sister. Mostly, it was old flannel shirts, pullovers, and jeans – stuff that fit her surprisingly well, although they were about three sizes too big on her. The day before we left, she even smiled at me a couple of times, although she was still quiet as ever. She jumped whenever someone was at the door or the phone rang. It sort of freaked me out, too, but then we had a good reason to be paranoid._

'_If the cops get you, tell the truth. They'll know if you did nothing wrong because your story will check out. If it doesn't, lead them in another direction. But never lie. Never lie to a cop.'_

_My old man knew from experience. He'd been arrested several times, but somehow, he'd never been actually convicted of anything. He was a smooth talker. Even the cops called him 'silver tongue.' It was actually sort of fun when he got arrested, because I got to stay at one of the cops' apartment and play games with his kid. That was actually how I met Claire._

_I was at Officer McTavish's apartment when the doorbell rang, and, lo and behold, there stood another officer with an eight-year-old Claire at his side. I remember McTavish teasing about how his place wasn't a daycare, but he let Claire stay the night anyway. Cliff and I played games with her, trying to get her to talk. She wouldn't say a word._

_At the time, I thought she was dumb. As I later figured out, she wasn't dumb. She was just very quiet. I mean, according to McTavish, she hadn't said a word in over two years. The following year and a half, she didn't say anything either._

_What always cracked me up was the first thing she ever said to me, "Baka." It was Japanese, which I didn't understand at the time. For some reason, Cliff was learning it. When I asked him about it, he said it meant 'stupid' or 'idiot.' He asked why, and I just had to tell him. We cracked up about it, but for some reason, Claire started talking to me. Whenever someone else was around, she would whisper in my ear, but she was actually talking to me._

_She was my first crush, I must admit._

_I remember thinking about hat as we packed. She was even more beautiful now than she was then. Her long blonde hair was straight as pin and so silvery yellow it almost looked bleached. Her skin was equally pale. A bruise was fading on her cheek, and there was a bandage on her chin. The bruises and scrapes were nothing new, but they hurt whenever I say them nonetheless._

"_Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked curiously, peeking up me from her suitcase._

_I grinned. "Just remembering the first thing you ever said to me._

_She smiled sweetly and whispered, "Baka." We continued packing without another interruption._

* * *

"_Claire, wake up," I gently shook her shoulder._

_She whimpered in her sleep, flinching away from my hand and curling deeper into her blanket. I sighed, shaking her again. Her eyes flew open that time and she stared at me in the darkness for a long moment before she asked hesitantly, "Kai?"_

_I nodded. "Come here, honey." She crawled into my lap as I sat down on the bed. "What was the dream this time?"_

"_The doorbell rang," she told me, her voice so quiet I had to strain to hear it over the traffic. "But it wasn't the mailman. It was Officer McTavish, instead of the mailman. We couldn't figure out why, but then he held up this picture. And he turned to me and hit me over the head with a baseball bat and I woke up in this prison cell and momma and papa were standing outside yelling at me and you were sitting next to me and shaking your head and saying 'thanks for landing me in jail' and you were really mad and… and…" She broke into tears again._

"_It's okay, honey," I murmured into her hair. "Officer McTavish died two years ago."_

_Her shuddering continued, until it weakened around one am, and ceased entirely when sleep came over her again at three or so. We'd have to get up again at six, but it didn't matter. My angel needed her sleep, sleep that wasn't riddled with nightmares._

* * *

I stared at Claire. She was sleeping on the bench just inside the little driver's hut where Zack was steering the ferry. He'd pulled a blanket over her, and her head rested on her little rucksack. She cried in her sleep. I reached over and wiped the tear away.

"Who is she?" Zack asked curiously, glancing over his shoulder at me.

I smiled down at Claire. I'd doubted my fondness had been lost on the intuitive shipper and ferry driver. "She's a friend of mine."

"Popuri's gonna be real upset you bringing a lady friend over," He informed me, lifting a bushy eyebrow. "Why you bringing her, anyway?"

"She isn't a 'lady friend,' Zack, she's just a friend," I told him, rolling my eyes. "Well, more like a little sister." I smiled down at her, stroking her pretty blonde hair. I really didn't want to tell Zack, but then the man would need to know if I wanted him to watch out for her parents. "She's… sorta running away. Well, she is. She's running away from her parents."

"And you're helping her," he shook his head in mild disgust. "That ain't so smart, Kai."

I shrugged. "She's my friend. I promised to protect her, help her if she ever needed it. She needs this, Zack." I hesitated. "She needs me. And I swear if you say anything about her to anyone, I will find a way to get revenge on you."

He made a sharp turn and the whole ferry hitched as we steamed into port. "She's your gal, Kai. Take care of her. She seems like a sweetheart."

"She is," I informed him, grinning as I picked up Claire. She mumbled something in her sleep, so I kissed her forehead. "I'll be back for the stuff soon as I get her situated, okay?" He just nodded, beginning to unload the supplies for the supermarket.

She mumbled something else, and this time I understood it.

"Baka."

* * *

Read and review for lots of love ^^


	2. Don't Freak Out

**Title:** Home

**Author:** Lalipop

**Rating: **T

**Genre:** Drama/Romance

**Fandom:** Harvest Moon: (More) Friends of Mineral Town

**Disclaimer:** Harvest Moon and Natsume do not belong to me.

**Summary:** If she was a coward, I didn't know what bravery was. She didn't know how strong she really was,

and she needed to find that inner strength I loved about her. I just wasn't the right person to help her.

**Author's Notes:** ENJOY ^^

* * *

**Chapter the Second**

**Don't Freak Out**

**

* * *

**

I woke in an unfamiliar room, by myself. Honestly, I liked it better like that. And honestly, I knew the room, if only from pictures Kai had shown me. Orange-golden sunlight filtered through the window and the faded tatters that had, I supposed, once been curtains. I lay in a hammock, a thick, wooly, scratchy blanket over me. The room was filled with boxes, each labeled, although I didn't bother to read the inscriptions just yet. It took me a moment to figure out where I was, exactly, despite the hints the familiarity of the room alone gave me.

Mineral Town. Kae's little shack, the one he'd told me he'd built on the beach a few years back. There was an ocean between me and… those people. I shuddered and slipped out of the hammock, looking around. Our two suitcases were beneath the hammock. Kai couldn't be far away, could he?

I bit my lip, heading towards the only door I could see. There was a simple note taped to it, covered in Kai's messy handwriting.

_Claire,_

_I'll only be out for a little while, okay? Don't freak out on me honey,_

_you'll be just fine. I'll be back in a few minutes, and then we can make_

_dinner together, okay? Just sit back, relax, go through the shack, if you_

_want. Please don't leave, though._

_Love,_

_Kai_

I held the note to my chest for a long moment, trying to keep breathing, as I stumbled into what I supposed was the front room. He wouldn't have left if it weren't completely necessary. He wouldn't have. He knew how scared I got… I blinked around, the weight of the situation hitting me.

I had no idea how to navigate the house I was in.

I had no idea where said house was, except that it was on a beach near a village called Mineral Town.

I had no idea where Mineral Town was, except that there was a water barrier between here and Kai's apartment.

I also had no idea where the one person I trusted happened to be.

I sank to the floor beside the counter, trying to breathe deeply and slowly. It wouldn't help anything if I hyperventilated. It wouldn't help anything if I fainted. I needed to stay conscious, focused. I couldn't afford to freak out. Kai even asked me not to. I could do that. I could listen to him. I could do it.

Dear Goddess, I hoped I could do this.

The front door slammed open just as I'd gotten my breathing under control, and a shrill voice shrieked, "KA – who are you?"

I peeked out between strands of my hair, only to find a very beautiful girl with cotton candy pink hair standing in the doorway, hands on her hips. She stared at me with such suspicion my heartbeat spiked again. It was like a car crash: horrible, frightening, but you couldn't look away. I couldn't look away. Needless to say, I also couldn't answer. I just stared back at her, my hearting beating erratically in my chest – actually, it felt like it had jumped into my throat – and my breathing shallow and nearly impossible to complete.

"Who are you?" she repeated, her face flushing scarlet. The only coherent thought that I had was that it really didn't match her hair. Why was she so angry anyway? I hadn't done anything wrong.

Had I?

I had, hadn't I?

What had I done?

How could I fix it?

How could I… make her stop being angry?

Her face turned purple. That was even less attractive than the red, although it matched a bit better. "I _said_, who are you?"

Things happened really fast after that. I was sure I just was about to faint but somehow I was standing up and Kai was staring at me. His mouth was moving as he lifting my arms by the wrists, moving them over my head.

"Breathe, Claire, breathe," He whispered, stroking my hair with his free hand.

Once I figured out how to do that godforsaken task, I clung to him, whispering, "Why's she so mad at me? What did I do wrong, Kai?"

He stroked my hair, whispering back, "You didn't do anything wrong, darling. It's all me. She's mad at me."

"Kai… care to explain?" the pink-haired girl asked haughtily from the door. I shrunk further into Kai's arms. "Or should I just draw my conclusions and leave? Because, really, you could have at least come by and told me you already had some blonde bimbo hanging all over you."

"I think you've been hanging out a bit too much with Karen," he informed her, sounding a bit annoyed. I was not only scared stiff by the girl, but the last comment had hurt. My heart shuddered in my chest, which started aching a bit. I was already off on the wrong foot here. How could this ever work out? How could Kai have expected this to ever work out? "You used to be so sweet, Popuri. What changed?"

The smile in her voice was obvious. "You happened."

I could feel the blush spread over my body, and it wasn't even for me. I was blushing because of something she'd implied about them. I clung to Kai, pleading, "Make her go away, Kai."

"Not yet, honey," he replied softly, so the girl couldn't hear. "But why don't you go into the back room and change into something fresher, Claire? You might feel better."

_Fat chance._ But I obeyed anyway, clinging tighter for a moment before I slipped back into the room I'd come from without even looking back. I changed into a pair of denim overalls and a red-and-white plaid flannel shirt. I even pulled on some old work boots Kai had found for me, one of two pairs of shoes that had fit me from his sister's closet. I peeked through a crack between door and doorframe to see Kai talking to and laughing with the pink-haired girl.

Okay, bad timing. I moved back to the hammock and sat on it, looking around. The golden light was fading, slowly giving way to the darkness of night. How late was it? I checked my wrist – no watch, although it didn't surprise me. I'd stopped wearing a watch years ago because…

Don't close your eyes, Claire. Don't think about it. Think about now. Maybe think about tomorrow. That'll be so much better for you.

It would be. I knew that. It would be better for me not to remember. I could remember times with Kai, but honestly, I'd never been good at controlling what I remembered when I chose to do so. In short, it _was_ just better for me not to think about it. And there was me, always the—

"—Claire?" I looked up, finding Kai peeking into the room. Did that mean she was gone? I smiled weakly at him. "There you are, honey – you were taking so long." I watched him silently for a long moment, until he blushed and murmured, "Don't look at me like that, Claire."

"She's your girlfriend, isn't she?" I whispered, staring at him.

He blushed deeper, which he didn't do frequently. "Uh, yeah…"

"So I have to meet her," I added, just as softly, my eyes lowering to my knees. The denim was faded there, turning almost white against the soft blue everywhere else.

Kai sat down beside me, which I only realized because the hammock weighed down and his thigh slid against mine. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me against his chest. "You don't have to," he murmured into my hair, rubbing my back soothingly. "But it might make things easier for you. She tends to hang around here a lot when I'm around." I stiffened against him, not liking the sound of that. He noticed, because he added, "Besides, you need a friend…and it'd make me happy if you got along with her."

I looked up at him, meeting his eyes with my surprised ones. He not only wanted me to meet her, he wanted me to make friends with her? Was he insane?

He bit his lip. "Never mind, honey."

I watched him for a long moment, reading his face, his posture. His face was down-turned, a bit of the blood still coloring his darkly tanned face in a blush. He looked a bit sad, honestly, and nervously wrung his hands in his lap. He still chewed on his lip, eyes flickering all over the place.

I bit my own lip, then hugged him gently and kissed his cheek. "I'll try…"

Kai blinked at me, surprise coloring his face as he looked up. "Really, Claire? I mean, she can be a bit over the top, excitable and all… I don't want to frighten you on your first day here, honey, or anything."

"Are you trying to convince me otherwise?" I whispered into his shoulder, which shook a moment a later as he laughed in amusement. "Baka."

He took my hand and pulled me up and into the other room. I didn't even have time to react before I was suddenly enveloped in thin arms and my face was covered with a bush of fluffy pink cotton candy, just as Kai called, sounding like he was wincing, "Popuri! Popuri! What are you doing? Remember what I told you!" When she finally released me, I was shaking. He tugged her back, murmuring worriedly, "_Now_ look what you did."

The pink-haired girl blushed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Sorry, Claire. Kai said that was what your name is: Claire. Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

I shrugged, backing up a bit, watching her timidly. She was excitable, just like Kai had said. And she had scared me, which I hated enough to begin my dislike of her.

"He also said you're real quiet," she continued. "Guess it's true, huh?" She giggled nervously as I nodded, chewing on my tongue. "So…you staying here with Kai?"

I nodded, moving to bite my lip instead of my tongue.

"I'm still leaving the last day of summer," Kai informed her, patting my shoulder. "I'm trying to find a place for her to stay here when I leave, if she likes it here."

Popuri looked at me, and, when I shrugged, she thought for a moment, and then suggested, "How about that farm down by ours?"

Kai and I stared at her in confusion, until Kai asked hesitantly, "Popuri?"

"You know, that abandoned farm that's down beside Chicken Lil's?" she asked, and when neither of us understood, she rolled her eyes. "Well, there's a farm down there, on the outskirts of town. It's pretty run-down, and it's been abandoned for a few years, but Thomas is saying it's still livable." I glanced at Kai, who looked like he was catching on. I was still a bit lost. "Just ask Thomas if you can have the farm. I'm sure it'll be cheap, and if you explain the situation, he'll give it to you really easy!"

"Perfect!" Kai exclaimed. He turned to me, clapping me on the back, pushing me slightly towards the other girl. I backed up just as quickly. "We can ask Thomas if you can have the farm. It'll probably take a few days or weeks to get everything settled, so we can handle the paperwork and you can move in a few days before I leave. You get settled, and if it doesn't work for you, we'll figure things out before I leave, okay, Claire?"

I nodded hesitantly.

"Uhm…Claire?" Popuri murmured, looking a bit embarrassed. I titled my head to the side curiously, but didn't voice my thoughts. "I…wanted to, you know, make sure you were cool. With earlier. And me hugging you and all. You know, that you'd forgiven me for that. Kai warned me, but… I get excited, I guess."

I smiled at her, a bit timid but smiled, actually smiled. It felt, strange almost, new, too, because the only person I ever smiled at lately was Kai. Kai laughed at my side, ruffling my hair.

"That's her way of telling you it's okay," Kai explained to his girlfriend.

She grinned at me, almost lunging forward, but stopped herself. Instead, she held out her hand. I shook it, and she grinned bigger than she had before. It felt like it would break her face in half, but it also made her much more beautiful. I felt like scum, ugly.

I could blame that on what had happened at home. I could blame it on so many things, but the important part was that it was the way it was and it…would take a lot to fix it up, if that was even possible. Being the pessimist I was, I sincerely doubted things would ever get better for me. I had never had that inner strength, and what little I'd been said to have had been destroyed or compressed inside me.

Kai said that's why I hurt inside sometimes, because there was something beautiful there that had been tied up and compacted, and it wanted to get out. The pain was that beautiful thing trying to get out. I didn't believe him. I never had.

Either way, Kai ended up pleading with Popuri to go get this mysterious Thomas. He said he didn't want to leave me alone again, because I'd obviously nearly freaked out last time, despite his note. Although he was obviously teasing, I felt bad again for not having obeyed. She rushed off with a peck on the lips to him and another awkward handshake to me.

When she was gone, Kai sat me down at one of the tables and made me a sandwich.

"Thomas is the mayor here," he informed me, setting a china plate in front of me and going back to the counter. "He's a pretty nice guy, but he's also a bit… on the overreacting side."

I nibbled on the sandwich. "Energetic. Like…"

"…Popuri, yeah," he admitted softly. He came back from the counter with two glasses, handing one to me. "Pineapple juice," he explained, getting a grin from me as he sat down again. "Anyway, he might be a bit skeptical, but I think you'll be able to handle him pretty easily. As far as I know, that farm's been up for sale since forever, so he'll want to get rid of it."

"You're leaving me again, aren't you?" I asked him, putting the sandwich down.

He blushed. "I just…gotta talk some friends into something. As a favor for me. And I need to make sure my room at the inn's still available. Will you be cool sleeping here on your own?"

I bit my lip, staring down at the bread on the plate and shrugging. Could I? I didn't know, honestly. I wanted him to be proud of me, to know I wasn't that much of a coward, but…I doubted I was strong enough. But he _was_ being nice and letting me stay here and all that… "I…I'll try, Kai, but… no promises, okay?"

"Good," he grinned.

And then, Popuri came in, leading in a short man with a big nose, dressed in a red suit and giant red top hat. I picked up the sandwich and did my best not to freak out again, nibbling hastily.

Honestly, it wasn't as bad as I thought. The man was nice enough, although his handshake was sweaty and sort of disgusting. He wrung his hands as he talked to me – actually, he was looking at me and talking to Kai.

"Kai, are you quite sure?" the mayor asked him uncertainly, watching me somewhat curiously.

My friend nodded, grinning. "Claire needs a place to stay for a little while. I'll pay the rent or whatever, handle the paperwork and everything. As long as the farm belongs to her."

"That should be fine," Thomas nodded. "Shall we fill out the legalities, Miss Claire?" I nodded, and Thomas led me to a table at the back of the restaurant.


	3. Agreements

**Title:** Home

**Author:** Lalipop

**Rating: **T

**Genre:** Drama/Romance

**Fandom:** Harvest Moon: (More) Friends of Mineral Town

**Disclaimer:** Harvest Moon and Natsume do not belong to me.

**Summary:** If she was a coward, I didn't know what bravery was. She didn't know how strong she really was,

and she needed to find that inner strength I loved about her. I just wasn't the right person to help her.

**Author's Notes:** I am not happy with these chapters… review to tell me if they're okay?

* * *

**Chapter the Third**

**Agreements

* * *

**

I reminded Thomas only to ask yes or no questions because she was really shy, then kissed Claire on the cheek and walked Popuri home.

Needless to stay, I was freaking out as we walked, but doing pretty well in containing the emotion. I didn't know Thomas well enough to be able to predict what state I would find Claire in when I returned. I didn't know if he had enough tact not to scare the hell out of her. Yes, he seemed polite and even a bit soft-spoken, but how could I relax knowing what I'd just done?

Dear Harvest Goddess…I'd never asked anything of the goddess, but I really should see if that myth was true. I needed to know if, when you threw an offering into her spring, you could really talk to her. If I could… I'd be pleading that Claire would be happy here. She deserved that. She deserved to be so many things I wasn't able to provide her with, and she was such a beautiful soul it hurt to see how tormented she was.

The thing was that she didn't see herself clearly. She claimed she was a coward, that she had nothing going for her. If she was a coward, I didn't know what bravery was. She didn't know how strong she really was, and she needed to find that inner strength I loved about her. I just wasn't the right person to help her.

Even worse was that she saw none of the other things that made me lucky to be her friend. Not counting for her natural, physical beauty and her amazing smile, she was kind, she was polite. She had a beautiful voice, once she allowed herself to speak.

"Kai?"

I glanced down at the pink-haired girl who walked beside me, blinking in confusion. Had she said something? "Uh…yeah?"

She smiled sympathetically. "You're very distracted right now. If you want to go back and let me go the rest of the way alone, that's fine…"

It amazed me how easily she'd taken my explanation, my attempts at giving her a good reason to not be mad at Claire. My angel couldn't take anyone being angry at her on her first day, and she really needed a friend. Popuri was a good person. If anyone could make friends with Claire, Popuri should be able to. I think she realized that, too, and that was part of why she had accepted it so easily. Besides, it should have been pretty obvious that I had no romantic interested in Claire whatsoever.

That sounded too harsh, and I had to admit that, at one point, I had. Like I said, she was my first ever crush. The thing was, I'd gotten over that a few years ago, when I'd developed from the head-over-heels friend to the protective older brother. I still loved Claire, but in a familial way rather than a romantic way. I wouldn't dream of kissing Claire anywhere on her lips.

Popuri nudged me. "See, you're doing it again."

"Sorry, love," I murmured, rubbing the back of my neck uncomfortably. "I _am_ worried, and I'm really sorry. But I promise as soon as Claire gets settled in, we're going on a special date, just the two of us, okay?"

She grinned, leaned up to kiss my cheek, and giggled, "Okay. Now, get done with your business, and go back to her. She does need you." Before I could even say anything, she turned around and flounced the rest of the way to Chicken Lil's.

I stared after her for a moment before I turned around and headed to the inn.

There, I cleared up the problem with my room with Ann. Although she was regularly miffed that I hadn't called to ask about it before, she let me pay for the summer and didn't make a huge fuss otherwise. In fact, she welcomed me back.

I knew making friends with the innkeeper's daughter was a good idea.

I headed up the stairs, finding one room empty and Gray sitting at his desk in the other. Cliff was nowhere in sight, which I asked the blacksmith about. He only grunted, "Shower," so we spent the next ten minutes catching up.

When Cliff returned, I greeted him more enthusiastically than I had Gray, and we, too, spent a bit catching up while Gray returned to his book. I'd never known the blacksmith to read before, but then, I didn't know him all that well either. Having spent three summers here really wasn't enough to decide a thing like that.

"So…Manna mentioned someone's staying at your place," Cliff muttered, watching me curiously.

I settled on the bed and started tossing a baseball from hand to hand. Gray put his book down, turning around in his chair to stare at me. "You remember how I used to stay at your place when my old man got arrested?" Cliff nodded. "Remember the really quiet blonde girl that showed up one night?"

"Claire or something, right?"

"That's her," I told him, nodding. "She's having issues at home, so she's staying with me for the summer."

Cliff lifted an eyebrow. "Is she still playing mute, then?" Gray rolled his eyes at the desk.

"Sort of," I admitted. "I mean, she's scared to death of people. As far as I know, the people she talks to… well, I could count them on one hand, if things haven't change in the past few weeks. Because of the trouble, I think that number might've gone way down, you know?"

"What's the favor?" Gray grunted, getting up to turn the overhead light on. It was getting dark…I needed to get back to Claire.

I stared at him. "What?"

"What's the favor?" he repeated, sitting down again. "You sound like you want us to do something for you, probably in regard to this girl you're talking about."

"She probably isn't a girl anymore," Cliff muttered. "It's been, what, thirteen years since I saw her? She was only eight back then…"

"It's been fifteen years, Cliff," I grinned. "I'm surprised you remember her."

Cliff grinned back at me. "How could I forget her? She's the girl who, with her first word, called you 'baka.' She hit that nail right on the head. Pretty smart, if you ask me." He paused a moment. "Where'd she learn that anyway?"

"I have no idea."

"The favor?" Gray reminded us, looking a bit annoyed.

I sighed. "Fine. Well, it's kind of a two-part thing, you know?" Gray glared at me. "First part's just you guys coming over to dinner tomorrow, so you can meet her, officially. You know, maybe get to know her a bit. That's not so bad, is it?"

"If your food's free, I'd come over any day of the week," Cliff admitted, grinning.

Gray shrugged.

"The second part's…" I hesitated, watching their expressions and going over what I knew of them. Cliff worked at the winery, thanks to Ann talking to Duke. Gray was Saibara's apprentice, a blacksmith. Neither was really a people-person, although both were nice when you opened them up. They seemed like Claire, only less extreme with their agoraphobia, so it should work out… right? Dear Goddess, I hoped so. "Do you think you guys could keep an eye on her, after I leave? I mean, I have to go back to the city, and she…can't. Thomas is doing the paperwork with her – for the farm that's down by Chicken Lil's and the smithy. She's not good with people, but she can't handle being on her own very well…and I think she needs someone to rely on, you know? Popuri isn't good for that, and I know both of you could do it."

"You want us to make nice with the new girl?" Cliff asked, grinning as he lifted an eyebrow.

I winced. "Basically."

Gray watched me for a moment as Cliff fell silent. "She can come to the smithy when she's done with whatever work she's gonna do at the farm, hang out with Gramps and me. Gramps will probably love her." He didn't sound so excited about that. "And I can take her to the library with me in the afternoon. She should be fine at night, right?"

I hesitated.

The man's eyes narrowed. "Kai."

"She has nightmares," I admitted, wincing again. Here they were trying to help me out, and I was just dumping more crap on their backs. Well, shit… bring on the guilt and load it on top of the rest.

Cliff nodded, seeming to understand. "I can handle that. We've had plenty of kids with nightmares at my dad's."

"You're really going to do it?" I stared at them, almost amazed.

The grin spread over Cliff's face again. "Sure. But can we tease her a bit tomorrow?"

Gray and I both glared, but it was the blacksmith that said, "By we, you must mean you, Cliff." I nodded to Gray in thanks. The blacksmith didn't meet my eyes, turning back to his book and ignoring both Cliff and me for the rest of the few minutes I spent there.

I got back to the shack to find Claire sweeping the front porch, her face grim. She'd stolen one of my bandanas and used it to tie her hair out of her face, and, I had to admit, it actually fit her pretty well. She looked good in purple.

"Hey, Claire," I greeted, grinning. She looked up, and broke into a tiny smile. "How'd it go with the mayor man?"

Her smile widened a tad. "Good."

When she didn't elaborate, I stole the broom, took her hand, and led her back inside, teasing, "So the farm's yours?"

She shrugged. "As soon as someone pays for it. I'm sorry, but I can't afford it." She slid to the floor, sitting there and crossing her legs. "And I can't let you pay for it, Kai."

I slid to the floor to side beside her, letting my head fall back to hit the wall with a _thump_. "Why not, Claire?"

"Financials are traceable," she whispered.

I looked down at her, finding her chin on knees she had lifted up, thin arms wrapped around her legs so her scrawny elbows jutted out the sides. Her pale blonde hair wisped around her shoulders and touched the floor. "Yeah, so?" was the only response I was able to give.

"If… _they_ decide to look into your financials, this will stick out like a sore thumb."

Once more, we fell into an uncomfortable silence. I really didn't know how to respond to that. She was right. And from what I knew of her folks, they _would_ look into my financials to see if I was paying for a penthouse for her or something outrageous like that. They knew I liked Claire well enough to actually do that. I sighed in frustration.

"Could you rent it?" I asked her, looking for any way to get her to stay in town for as long as possible. Mineral Town was safe, for nearly anyone. I'd been telling the truth when I said there was only the one phone. The town was small enough not to need more. There were TV's, but only the four channels, all local as far as I was aware. There wasn't even a newspaper around – at least, not one that was up to date. I was sure there were some old mainland newspapers in the library, but I wasn't sure how old those would be. The only person we would have to worry about was Zack, and he'd promised to keep Claire out of mind.

My angel shook her head.

"What about paying him bits at a time?" I asked, the idea bursting from my lips before it had really registered in my head. "You know, you'll probably earn money working the farm. You'll just give him some of it every week. That should be cool, right?"

Claire peeked at me, large blue eyes staring at me from between golden strands. She looked both confused and surprised, not nearly as excited as I happened to be. Why wasn't she excited? I'd basically figured out the problem we faced! "I don't know, Kai," she murmured. "I don't know how it'll work…"

"I'll help. It'll be easy, Claire!" She was still watching me in disbelief. "Come on, Claire bear."

She bit her lip, but nodded.

I'd never seen Claire angrier or more frightened at the same moment as when I told her Cliff and Gray were coming to dinner. Thomas had cleared my plan for Claire's paying for the farm, and we'd made our way back to the shack to prepare said dinner.

"Why didn't you ask me first, Kai?" she whispered, as I felt the argument winding down. Well, it was more of me trying to talk her into this than anything else, honestly. Claire didn't usually argue. She wasn't aggressive enough to stand up for her side of an argument or discussion.

I placed my hands gently on her shoulders. "I knew you'd say no, and you need to meet new people. Cliff and Gray are cool guys. You'll be fine. I promise."

She peeked over my shoulder at the doorway apprehensively. "They're nice?" She whispered, staring at me, all doe-eyed.

"Yeah," I assured her, pulling her into a hug.

She went willingly enough, but when the bell at the door rang as it opened, she freaked and ran into the kitchen to hide. I greeted my friends while she began cooking, much to my surprise. I excused myself, telling them to get comfortable, and went to help her. I heard Cliff goofing around as we prepared some sashimi, made from fresh fish I'd caught only yesterday.

"Food's up!" I yelled, placing the food on the table for my two friends. Claire was waiting in the background. I rolled my eyes, ushering her forward and hugging her with one arm. "Claire, this is Gray. Gray, meet Claire."

The blacksmith grunted and nodded, not looking up. It hit me for the first time in a long time that he was probably nearly as shy as Claire could be. Again, I rolled my eyes. Jesus Christ. Claire wouldn't meet his eyes either. In fact, she didn't even look at him.

"And Claire, you might remember Cliff," I suggested, gesturing to my other friend. She glanced up, peeking between strands of hair to study Cliff. He grinned at her, waving. She blushed and looked away. So she remembered him. I think. "Let's chow."

I pulled out a chair for Claire, and we ate.


End file.
